The premium tax credits initially drafted under the Affordable Care Act were enhanced under the Biden administration during the COVID-19 pandemic. These credits were set to expire at the end of this year, nearly 19 months after then-President Joe Biden declared the coronavirus pandemic had ended.
“There are discussions around extending the subsidies, if we deal with the fraud, waste, and abuse that, right now, is paralyzing the system,” Oz said on CNN’s State of the Union on Sunday. “The big question is this: How do we insure people but make it sustainable?”
CMS Administrator Dr. Mehmet Oz on whether President Trump is considering extending Obamacare subsidies: “There are discussions around extending the subsidies.” pic.twitter.com/lWvNJwpudL
— State of the Union (@CNNSOTU) November 16, 2025
A Congressional Budget Office report estimated that permanently extending the enhanced credits would cost the government $383 billion. However, if they permanently expire, the number of people without health insurance would rise by an average of 3.8 million annually by 2034.
“I promise you, the president is laser-focused on this,” Oz said, addressing these possibly uninsured people.
BASH: “If somebody is watching now, worried that they are not going to be able to afford insurance at the end of the year, are you making a promise that the President and Congress will make sure that they can?”
Dr. Oz: “I promise you, the President is laser focused on this.” pic.twitter.com/J2jwIMZvmn
— State of the Union (@CNNSOTU) November 16, 2025
DEMOCRATS RECKON WITH LOFTY OBAMACARE PROMISES AFTER SHUTDOWN DEFEAT
Democratic senators voted against a continuing resolution to fund the government that was drafted under Biden and successfully passed back in March of this year over these tax credits. Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) warned of an impending “healthcare crisis.”
Part of the deal that brought the Senate to cloture last week to pass the CR included a promise to bring a bill to extend ACA tax credits to the Senate floor. The upper chamber has roughly 20 working days to get the bill through before the Jan. 31 deadline.
